Los Angeles Rams head coach Sean McVay provided an update on Puka Nacua's practice return after an injury scare.
Los Angeles Rams head coach Sean McVay provided an update on Puka Nacua's return timeline after an injury scare.
McVay said that he expects his All-Pro wide receiver to be back on the football field next week, following his early exit from the joint practice against the Dallas Cowboys.
"Puka's doing good," McVay said. "He just had a little soreness in his kind of psoas. So we're just being smart with him. Expect him to be back next week ready to go."
Nacua misses Thursday’s practice with soreness in his groin. He first experienced the injury during Tuesday’s joint practice against the Dallas Cowboys.
Although Nacua did not practice with the team on Thursday, he was off to the side with a member of the training staff. The good news is that the injury doesn't appear to be serious. The Rams said they pulled him from Tuesday's joint practice primarily as a precaution.
Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford told reporters on Tuesday that he wasn’t concerned about Nacua leaving practice.
The Rams' offense is expected to be among the best in the league, largely because of Nacua. While he’s dealt with some major injuries in his football career dating back to college, health (for the most part) has been on his side throughout his first three years in the NFL.
Nacua has played in 44 of a possible 51 games in the regular season. He's been available and played in all six playoff games the Rams have participated in.
While health doesn’t appear to be the issue with Nacua, there is a chance he could miss the team’s season opener in Australia against the San Francisco 49ers.
Nacua is still dealing with a lawsuit tied to an incident on New Year's Eve when he allegedly bit a woman.
Nacua's case is still under review, as well as Alaric Jackson’s, who was arrested on a domestic violence charge in June. The NFL has yet to reveal if there will be any punishment for either, and McVay is also unsure of what will happen just yet.
As for the football side of things, Nacua is set to enter his fourth season in the league and the final year of his current four-year, $4.08 million deal. Through the first three years of his career, Nacua has tremendously exceeded expectations as a fifth-round pick in the 2023 NFL Draft.
Nacua's rise has been remarkable, considering the Rams selected him in the fifth round and as the fifth player off the board in that round. He has since developed into one of the best players from the 2023 draft class and one of the league's premier players in the NFL.
Nacua will likely enter the 2026 season without a new contract. He has a chance to set himself up for a major payday in 2027.
